Standing outdoors the Better Muskogee Space Chamber of Commerce, Cube Dawson leans towards his pick-up truck and talks about how his hometown is producing regional consideration for its position within the Aug. 23 Oklahoma Republican major runoff.
Nestled alongside the Arkansas River round 50 miles southeast of Tulsa, Muskogee is a part of Oklahoma’s 2nd Congressional District.
Rep. Markwayne Mullin has represented the area in Congress over the past decade. He’s working towards former Oklahoma Speaker of the Home T.W. Shannon within the GOP U.S. Senate major runoff.
Muskogee native and resident Avery Frix, a 28-year-old Oklahoma state consultant who was first elected to that seat in 2017, is main within the polls over former Oklahoma state Sen. Josh Brecheen within the race to exchange Mullin.
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Muskogee native and longtime resident Cube Dawson voted for Muskogee’s Avery Frix within the 2nd Congressional District GOP major runoff on Aug. 23. (Jeff Louderback/The Epoch Occasions)
Dawson was born and raised in Muskogee and for many of the Seventies and Nineteen Eighties lived in San Francisco and Los Angeles, the place he cast a profession as a stand-up comedian and actor. He returned to his hometown in 1993, craving a quiet and slower-paced day.
Frix, whose great-grandfather began a neighborhood development firm in 1940 that’s nonetheless in enterprise at this time, returned to Muskogee after incomes a level from the College of Oklahoma.
Frix additionally heads up the Roxy Theatre and spearheaded the Oklahoma Film Corridor of Fame being hosted in Muskogee. He owns a tourism and facility administration whereas his spouse, Haley, owns Broadway Market in downtown Muskogee.
“I grew up together with his father and watched him [Avery Frix] develop up,” mentioned Dawson, sporting an “I Voted” sticker and a T-shirt with the emblem of his namesake Muskogee tennis match that he has hosted for greater than 30 years.
“He directed a play when he was 7, began his manufacturing firm at a younger age, and have become a state consultant when many individuals his age have been nonetheless determining what they needed to do.
“I’d say that he’s sensible and pushed, and he cares about the way forward for Muskogee and this district,” Dawson added.
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“He’s what we’d like in Washington, somebody who shouldn’t be a part of the institution and somebody who has a monitor report of getting issues accomplished.”
As for the race between Mullin and Shannon, Dawson most popular to announce a favourite, however he did say that the endorsement of former president Donald Trump has important influence in Muskogee County.
“If Trump says he’s for Mullin, many individuals round right here will hear,” Dawson mentioned. “What Trump says issues to most individuals in Oklahoma.”
Within the 2020 presidential election, Trump received each county in Oklahoma and trounced Joe Biden by 33.08 p.c and greater than 500,000 votes.
Not everybody in Muskogee helps Trump and Frix, one Democratic celebration voter mentioned outdoors the town’s Martin Luther King Middle after casting his poll.
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“I’ve lived right here all my life, and I’ve identified Avery for years. We’ve even labored on some group initiatives collectively,” mentioned Joseph, who requested that solely his first identify be used.
“I like plenty of what he’s accomplished, however focusing his marketing campaign round Trump this and Trump that isn’t interesting to me.
“Irrespective of whether or not you’re a Republican, a Democrat, or an unbiased, we’re all human beings. We don’t all need to agree with one another on a regular basis,” Joseph added.
Indicators at a shopping mall in Muskogee, Oklahoma encourage residents to vote within the state’s GOP major runoff elections on Aug. 23. (Jeff Louderback/The Epoch Occasions)
Frix mentioned that he entered the 2nd district race as a result of he’s displeased with the course that the “liberal left” is transferring America.
“We’re not going to have a rustic if we proceed down this path that we’re headed, and that’s why I wish to arise and battle for [former] president Trump’s America First agenda,” Frix mentioned. “We’ve obtained to get that achieved, and we’ve obtained to get that carried out.”
Mullin, a former skilled MMA fighter and an entrepreneur who owns a cattle ranch and a plumbing firm amongst different enterprises, superior to the runoff because the main vote-getter amongst a discipline of 13 candidates.
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Shannon—who like Mullin is campaigning on a pro-Trump, America First platform—completed second and joined Mullin within the Aug. 23 runoff.
A latest ballot performed between Aug. 11 and Aug. 15 by Oklahoma Metropolis-based Amber Built-in confirmed Mullin with 46 p.c help amongst Republican voters surveyed in comparison with 27 p.c for Shannon, whereas 20 p.c of the respondents are undecided.
Mullin is endorsed by Trump and Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt.
Frix shouldn’t be endorsed by Trump, who didn’t again a candidate within the 2nd Congressional District race, however he’s a loyalist to the previous president.
At a debate earlier this month, Frix asserted that Brecheen is a “by no means Trumper” whereas Brecheen responded by declaring social media posts exhibiting his help for the previous president.
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The 43-year-old Brecheen—who’s from Ada, Oklahoma, and lives together with his spouse and youngsters on their ranch in Coal County—served for eight years within the Oklahoma State Senate whereas Frix has six years of expertise in Oklahoma’s Home of Representatives.
When the outcomes for the June 28 Republican major have been introduced, Frix completed atop a discipline of 14 candidates with 14.7 p.c of the vote adopted by Brecheen’s 13.8 p.c.
In accordance with a joint ballot performed by TV information associates in Oklahoma Metropolis and Tulsa on Aug. 19, Frix carried a six-point edge over Brecheen, although 42 p.c of Republican voters mentioned they have been undecided.
The survey, which was performed between Aug. 11 and Aug. 17 amongst seemingly runoff voters, reported that 27.2 p.c of the undecided voters favored Frix whereas 21.1 p.c leaned towards Brecheen.
Dawson doesn’t care about polls, he mentioned. He likes Frix due to the Muskogee native’s appreciation of native historical past, and his “dedication to creating this a greater metropolis.”
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Opened in 1948, the Roxy Theater in Muskogee is dwelling to the Oklahoma Film Corridor of Fame. (Jeff Louderback/The Epoch Occasions)
Nation music legend Merle Haggard put Muskogee on the map together with his 1969 single “Okie from Muskogee,” a music he mentioned he wrote after he turned dismayed watching Vietnam Battle protests.
The music reached the highest of Billboard journal’s nation singles chart and remained there for 4 weeks.
Muskogee has lengthy embraced its music and leisure heritage, even lengthy earlier than Haggard’s music. Town is dwelling to the Oklahoma Music Corridor of Fame and Museum, and the Oklahoma Film Corridor of Fame, housed on the renovated Roxy Theater, which opened in 1948.
Frix is head of the Roxy Theatre and spearheaded the hassle to launch the Oklahoma Film Corridor of Fame.
To Dawson, who nonetheless seems as an actor in regional productions, that “exhibits the drive that may translate to getting ends in Washington.”
“So many instances, politicians go to Washington for their very own good and overlook the place they got here from and who despatched them there,” Dawson mentioned. “He [Frix] is considered one of us and cares concerning the cities on this district. Muskogee will actually be represented in Washington if Avery Frix wins.”
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Jeff Louderback is a nationwide reporter for The Epoch Occasions who is predicated in Ohio and covers U.S. Senate, U.S. Home and gubernatorial races in Ohio and surrounding states.
St. Isidore, which aims to serve 1,500 students online within Oklahoma by its fifth year of operation, has the backing of Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt as well as former state schools superintendent Ryan Walters. Proponents of the plan say the online school would be a boon for rural Oklahoma students who do not have a Catholic school in their area.
The Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board had in April 2023 voted unanimously to disapprove the school’s application, later in June approving the contract 3-2 after revisions to the application.
Brett Farley, executive director of the Oklahoma Catholic Conference and a board member for the proposed school, told CNA following the first disapproval that the plan’s backers were “not discouraged at all.” He said at the time he believed Oklahoma’s government presents a “favorable environment to negotiate protections for religious liberty” to ensure that the school’s Catholic identity is not threatened by the acceptance of public funds.
The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City had pushed for approval of the school after former Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor issued an advisory opinion in late 2022 stating that because of the Supreme Court’s recent rulings, Oklahoma’s provisions banning religious schools from accessing public funds as charters could be unconstitutional. He cautioned that this legal change would not mean that religious schools using public funds “can necessarily operate however they want.” Drummond withdrew his predecessor’s opinion on the matter.
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In a dissent to the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s majority opinion, Justice Dana Kuehn argued that St. Isidore’s would be a partner of the state, not a government entity, and thus the state denying funds to St. Isidore’s because it is religious would violate the free exercise clause of the First Amendment.
“St. Isidore would not be replacing any secular school, only adding to the options available, which is the heart of the Charter Schools Act,” she wrote.
“The state is not required to partner with private entities to provide common education. But if it does, it cannot close the door to an otherwise qualified entity simply because it is sectarian … Contracting with a private entity that has religious affiliations, by itself, does not establish a state religion, nor does it favor one religion over another.”
Jonah McKeown is a staff writer and podcast producer for Catholic News Agency. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has worked as a writer, as a producer for public radio, and as a videographer. He is based in St. Louis.
SALLISAW, Okla. (AP) — An Alabama man accused in a string of killings in Oklahoma and Alabama has pleaded not guilty to two Oklahoma killings.
The pleas were entered on behalf of Stacy Lee Drake, 50, during a Monday court appearance, KHBS-TV reported. He faces two charges of enhanced murder.
Drake has has until Aug. 7 in the Oklahoma case to find a lawyer to represent him, or a public defender will be appointed for him, KHBS reported.
Relatives and friends of the victims packed the courtroom where Drake appeared.
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Drake was apprehended Thursday in a wooded area in the Morrilton, Arkansas, area after a search that spanned multiple southern states, Arkansas State Police said.
Drake is accused of homicides and carjackings in Oklahoma, Arkansas State Police said. They said he’s also wanted on other felony warrants from multiple jurisdictions on charges including aggravated robbery, carjacking and murder.
A man and a woman were found dead inside a business near Gans, Oklahoma, near the Arkansas state line, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said. Both had injuries consistent with homicide, and the agency said Drake is a person of interest.
In Alabama, Drake is accused of killing Russell Andrews on May 14, according to the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. Capt. Jack Kennedy of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit said there is a warrant for Drake on a murder charge. News outlets reported that Andrews, 62, was found dead inside the Alcoholic Anonymous building.
Tuscaloosa authorities said Andrews’ vehicle was stolen when he was killed and hours later was picked up by cameras travelling along an interstate near the Arkansas-Oklahoma border.
OKLAHOMA CITY (CBS) — Alex Caruso has returned to where his pro career began, in Oklahoma City, after being traded by the Bulls to the Thunder for Josh Giddey last week.
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Caruso was waived by the Thunder in 2016, and played for the NBA’s G-League’s Oklahoma City Blue. Now, he will join a young Thunder squad after a straight-up exchange between the Thunder and the Bulls.
But the defensive specialist’s time in Chicago won’t be forgotten.
“I loved playing my three years with Billy [Donovan]. He’s a great coach, and me and him had some really good conversations,” Caruso said. “Great memories—I’m not going to lose those relationships even though I’ve left Chicago. You know, I’ve made great relationships over three years with people in eth city, Chicago itself, and obviously, teammates and coaches.”
Caruso, an All-Defense guard who has spent the past three seasons with the Bulls after winning the 2020 championship with the Los Angeles Lakers, had been the subject of trade rumors for several years. The Bulls resisted offers built around draft picks throughout his entire time in Chicago.
But in Giddey, the Bulls land a former No. 6 overall pick who was in desperate need of a fresh start.
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Caruso is one of the best defensive perimeter players in all of basketball. He is capable of guarding
